The present invention generally relates to the display and storage of retail merchandise, and more particularly to merchandise display cases capable of being secured against unauthorized access.
Most retail establishments use merchandise display cases to provide sales countertops and secure areas for displaying and storing merchandise. In a typical arrangement, a display case has vertically arranged compartments which include an upper display area accessible through sliding cabinet doors at the "back" of the display case, i.e., the side accessible to store personnel, and a lower storage area, also accessible from the back of the case, which has one or more banks of storage drawers. To properly secure the merchandise display case against unauthorized access, all drawers and doors of the case must be locked. This is conventionally achieved by means of separate locking mechanisms--one for the banks of drawers and one for the cabinet doors--which must be separately keyed by store personnel who are apt to forget one or the other. Where numerous display cases are used the problem of properly locking up increases due to the increase in the number of locks that must be keyed.
Conventional merchandise display case designs have other drawbacks associated with the frequent use of gang locks for locking the bank or banks of drawers provided in the display case. One commonly used gang lock mechanism, known as the "Target" gang lock, is used to lock all but the topmost drawer within a bank of drawers. In the Target lock, a gang lock mechanism is located at the rear of the drawers and is actuated by a lever accessible through the topmost drawer after the topmost drawer is opened. Such a system has a number of disadvantages. First, it is awkward to use because of the requirement to reach within the top drawer of the display case to actuate the locking mechanism. Often, store clerks will forget to do this, resulting in a failure to secure the entire case. Secondly, the locking mechanism, which involves the rotation of a vertical rod in an arc about a vertical support post to engage locking brackets at the rear of the drawers, occasionally jams in the brackets rendering one or more drawers inoperable. The Target lock has further disadvantages in that it takes up valuable space within the cabinet of the merchandise display case and is difficult to maintain and install.
Another gang lock mechanism heretofore utilized in merchandise display cases is the KIC28 Series gang lock manufactured by Kenstan Lock, of Huntington Station, N.Y. The Kenstan lock simultaneously locks a vertical bank of drawers from a keyed lock accessible from the outside of the display cabinet. Also, the Kenstan lock provides a vertical gang bar which is operative in the front part of the cabinet and thus avoids the need to provide locking hardware at the rear of the cabinet drawers. Thus, the Kenstan lock overcomes some of the above-mentioned disadvantages of the Target system. However, the gang bar assembly of the Kenstan lock is made up of relatively thin gauged metal parts which tend to twist and hang up in the cabinet and which can break with repeated use. Also, the Kenstan lock can only be used to secure the drawers of a display case; a separate locking mechanism is still required to secure the display case's upper cabinet doors.
The present invention overcomes the drawbacks of conventional locking systems for merchandise display cases by providing a gang lock unit that permits a bank or banks of drawers within the display case as well as the display case's cabinet doors to be simultaneously locked by means of a single, accessible locking mechanism. The present invention also provides a gang lock unit for a merchandise display case that can be fabricated at relatively low cost, that is easy to install, and that takes up relatively little space in the cabinet of the display case. Additionally, the gang lock unit of the invention provides for a smooth locking action and reduces the tendency of gang locks to jam or fail with repeated use.